The world has eagerly awaited Conor McGregor’s return to the Octagon since his loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264, marking four years away from action. He was set to face TUF Season 31 rival coach Michael Chandler at UFC 303. But a last-minute toe injury derailed the bout. Hype surged again when Donald Trump announced the UFC White House card for next year’s 4th of July, though doubts still linger over whether ‘The Notorious’ will finally make his long-awaited comeback. 

McGregor fueled anticipation even further when he shared his urine and blood samples, followed by his name finally appearing in the anti-doping database. Hype for his comeback was through the roof. He also posted glimpses of his return to training, sharing sparring footage on Instagram. However, many still doubted whether something unfortunate might happen to derail his return once again. Now, it seems Dana White’s White House plans could be in jeopardy, as McGregor might be cut from the UFC roster altogether.

Popular X account UFC Roster Watch shocked fans by posting, “Fighter removed: Conor McGregor.” It didn’t take long for a flood of questions to pour in about whether the news was true or just a technical glitch. The account clarified in the comments, “To everyone messaging me asking, ‘Is this true?’ Yes, according to the official roster, our API indicates that he has been removed. We are unaware of any negotiations between Conor and the UFC.”

Well, as the UFC Roster Watch account states, many details remain to be uncovered about whether ‘The Notorious One’ is cut from the promotion. He still has two fights left on his contract, which raises multiple questions about whether the promotion was behind the decision to axe him. Whether Conor McGregor has reached some sort of disagreement or not remains to be seen, but hopefully, we’ll find out all the legitimate details soon.  

However, Dana White was recently very hyped to see McGregor taking his return seriously, getting back to training, and getting into shape. Still, with uncertainty lingering around the Irishman’s possible cut from the promotion, let’s take a closer look at what the UFC boss had to say.

Dana White opens up on Conor McGregor getting back to training    

Dana White and the top brass recently crossed a milestone by signing a $7.7 billion, seven-year deal ($1.1 billion per year) with Paramount+ and CBS. The year 2026 was already looking aspirational for the promotion, with the UFC White House event also in sight. Adding to the hype for both the UFC boss and fans, Conor McGregor re-entered the testing pool and began sharing training footage.

On the Pardon My Take podcast, the UFC boss said, “I mean, if you see, he’s been posting videos of himself training, he’s back in the pool now, he wants the White House fight. Listen, if he starts getting in shape and starts training and stays the course, that’s the fight he wants, he keeps telling me he wants that fight, so we’ll see how it plays out over the next few months.”

It looked like the Irishman was determined this time to move on from his past and finally get back on track to fight at the UFC White House. However, the news revealed by UFC Roster Watch came as a shocker. His potential opponent, Michael Chandler, might also be joining Dana White in seeing their plans for the American Independence Day spectacle get scrapped for good.

Still, it may take some time before the fog clears around Conor McGregor’s shocking removal from the promotion that he once brought eight straight million-dollar PPV buys for. So, do you think it’s true? Comment your thoughts in the section below.